The present invention relates to the charging of storage batteries and the like, for example, and, in particular, to the charging of industrial storage batteries of the type which are used to provide motive power for fork lift vehicles and the like.
In large factories and warehouses it is common to utilize a number of battery-driven vehicles such as fork lift trucks, tractors and the like. These vehicles are powered by large, heavy-duty electrical storage batteries which are removably mounted in the vehicles. The batteries must be frequently recharged, sometimes daily. Thus, typically, there are a number of batteries being charged while other batteries are being used in the vehicles.
The charging operation requires a considerable amount of manual labor in removing the discharged batteries from the vehicles and connecting them to the chargers at a charging location and replacing charged batteries in the vehicles. The charging location can occupy a considerable amount of floor space and the entire operation can be quite hazardous because of exposure of the operators to corrosive fluids and explosive vapors emitted from the battery. The danger of explosion is particularly acute during the charging process because of the possibility of electrical sparks from the charging apparatus. Also, care must be taken to keep track of the length of time each battery has been charging.